Kate Morton is one of my favorite authors. No one does modern gothic suspense better. Yes, her books have a formula. A dual timeline with a mystery set in the past and someone in the present that is connected to the crime and looking for answers. But the intricate web Morton weaves makes this bit of predictability irrelevant to me. Her newest novel, Homecoming is both a complex mystery and a family saga that I highly enjoyed.

As usual, Morton has created a captivating and eerie tale filled with suspense. I loved that Morton set this book in Australia. The setting comes to life under Morton’s deft hand and the mysterious land itself becomes a character. As usual, the plot is complex and I was never sure where it would go next. There was a little lag in the middle, but in the end it hardly mattered because the ending was so strong and the twists that were unveiled thrilled me. I often refer to Kate Morton as the modern Daphne duMaurier and this book is the perfect example why. If you enjoy modern gothic suspense I highly recommend you pick this one up.

I LOVED THIS BOOK. It’s not a quick read by any means, and you’ll definitely need to take some time to sit down and soak it in. But man, it was incredible. The characters were top notch, the story was well thought out and executed and the cover fits the book so well. If you are a historical fiction fan, I can’t recommend it enough.

Jess returns from London after an extended absence from her native Australia to visit her beloved grandma, Nora, in the hospital. Nora, who fell in her attic and hit her head, confuses Jess with another relative, and makes a cryptic statement that starts Jess on a chase to understand her family’s secrets. Set as a dual narrative between the Turner family in 1959 and Jess sixty years later, Homecoming reveals how keeping secrets can damage a family for generations. Fans of The Clockmaker’s Daughter will not be disappointed by the twists and turns of Morton’s latest effort.

This multi-generational saga tells the tale of a family of women and the tragedy in their history. Told from multiple perspectives and timelines, this lush tale set in Australia is sure to appeal to fans of historical mystery and fiction.

Homecoming is a beautifully written book, perfect for a summer weekend when the reader has plenty of time to get lost in a slow-unraveling of one family's secrets. Jess, a journalist living in London, gets word in 2018 that her beloved grandmother, Nora, has taken a terrible fall after an ill-advised trip up to her attic. Jess returns to Australia to care for her grandmother, who reveals some unknown family history in her delirium. Jess is determined to solve the mystery of the Turner family tragedy, when her grandmother's family was murdered on Christmas Eve of 1959. The novel alternates between Jess' investigation in 2018 and the events of 1959; there are also passages from a true-crime novel written about the Turner family's death, as well as interview transcripts from the investigation. The writing is consistently amazing throughout the entire book, and Kate Morton succeeds in bringing the Australian setting to life--I really felt like I was there in 1959 and could picture everything in my mind. Highly recommended for fans of historical fiction who enjoy sinking their teeth in a long, satisfying book. Thanks to Netgalley, Mariner Books, and Kate Morton for the librarian preview!

I don't gravitate towards long books, and there are very few authors that I enjoy enough that I'll happily, willingly sink into a 560 page book for- and Kate Morton is one of them. This Australian set family drama entails Jess, a forty-ish struggling reporter who returns home after her beloved grandmother, Nora, ends up in the hospital. A long buried family tragedy comes to light, and we slowly get to understand all the implications it has on Jess, Nora, and others, now. The story is thoughtful and emotional, and very page-turning despite the aforementioned length. The setting is immersive-a trait I've always loved of the author's writing- and I really loved it.

What a magical and enchanting read! I was engaged from the first page till the very last.
It's a sweeping family saga of love, loss, heartache, and a mother's love with a mystery at the heart of the story.
It all started on Christmas Eve 1959 with the death of a mother and her 3 children and the disappearance of a baby. It is now 2018 and a woman rushes back to Australia to her grandmother's hospital bed. What is her grandmother trying to tell her and will she be able to unravel the mystery of Halcyon and the Turner family and also find out about her biological father?
The descriptions are vivid and you feel like you are there in person.

"Make a choice and then trust yourself to have chosen correctly"

It's definitely a book you want to take your time with and savor not something you want to rush through.

I also loved the idea of a book within a book!

Thank you to Netgalley and Mariner Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion

This book is a slow burn. I say that because it was hard for me to get into. The first half was slow, but then it picked up about 60 percent of the way in, and I could not wait to find out what happened. It is 544 pages long, and I feel like 100 pages could have been cut to hold my interest more.

Before I get started on what the book is about, I will say I think it needs a trigger warning for child death. It was hard for me to read in parts, and I wish I had known what I was getting into.

The story is centered around two timelines. In the present day, Jess, our main character, and a journalist, returns to her hometown to visit her dying grandmother. The other storyline takes place in 1959 and is centered around the mysterious death of a family. Jess being the journalist she is, decides to try and solve the case.

The author does a great job or weaving the timelines together, and the ending is quite satisfying. This is a 3.5 star read for me, rounded up to 4. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Kate Morton always has a twist, and this one is no different. I didn't connect with the modern-times main character, but I wanted to find out the twist. This book has a regular twist and then a twisty twist. This is a perfectly good, entertaining read that people will absolutely love.

“Homecoming,” by Kate Morton, Mariner Books, 560 pages, April 4, 2023.

In Adelaide Hills, South Australia on Christmas Eve in 1959, Percy Summers, a delivery driver, finds the bodies of Thomas and Isabelle Turner and their children Matilda, John and Evie. The Turners were murdered, but their newborn daughter was kidnapped.

Fast forward to 2018. Jess Turner-Bridges is a freelance journalist in London. She learns that her grandmother, Nora, has had an accident, so she rushes back to Sydney. Nora raised her.

At Nora’s house, she finds a book about the Turner family. At she reads it, she finds that there is a connection to her family.

“Homecoming” is really long-winded. The story starts to move, then comes to a halt because of the backstory of multiple minor characters. This happens continually. The reveal makes sense, but this book just wasn’t for me.

In accordance with FTC guidelines, the advance reader's edition of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for a review.

Homecoming
By Kate Morton

A Consuming Story of Secrets and Intrigue

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

SUMMARY
Christmas Eve 1959, Isabel Turner and her four children set out for a picnic at the watering hole on the grounds of their mansion in Adelaide Hills. It's a beautiful warm day, and the sun is shining. Hours later, a delivery man stops by the watering hole to water his horse and instead makes a shocking discovery. At first glance, it appears the entire family looks as if they were asleep, But upon closer inspection, he finds all members of the family are dead. Local police are called in from the nearby town of Tambilla. The Turner Family tragedy becomes one of the most perplexing cases in the history of South Australia.

December 2018 Jess Turner-Bridges has lived in London for twenty years when she receives a phone call that her beloved grandmother, Nora, has fallen down the attic stairs and is in a Sidney hospital. Jesse flies back to Australia and finds that her grandmother is much weaker and more confused than she expected. The housekeeping tells Jesse that Nora has been distracted and upset the weeks before her accident. As Jess Some digging into her grandmother's recent activities on her own, she discovers a true crime book chronicling the Turner Family tragedy of Christmas Eve 1959. It is only when Jess skims the book that she finds a shocking connection between her own family and this infamous crime, a crime that has never been solved. Jess, an out-of-work journalist, can’t help but be drawn in by this cold case.


REVIEW
HOMECOMING is a consuming read full of buried secrets and intrigue. It covers multiple generations of the Turner family and the extent families will go to protect the lies and the effect these secrets have. Motherhood, love, and loss play a central theme in the story.

HOMECOMING is also about healing and hope once secrets are uncovered. The captivating writing is descriptive, poignant, and atmospheric. You can not help but feel the humid air around the lake and hear the quietness of the mansion on the hill early in the morning. The story is meticulously built and equal parts tragic and hopeful. It’s a continuous flow of suspense that keep the pages turning.

The characters are plentiful, and so many of them seem to play a pivotal role in the unfolding drama. Character development is essential with such a large cast, and author Kate Morton does a stellar job of character introductions and descriptions.

Morton has written six previous novels and all have been NYT bestsellers. She lives with her family in both London and Australia.

Thanks to Netgalley for an advance reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Publisher Mariner Books
Published April 4, 2023
Review www.bluestockingreviews.com

I have been a fan of Kate Morton for a long time and I was really excited for her new book to come out after 5 long years!

Similar to her other books, this story takes place over multiple timelines. The story begins in 1959 when a family is found dead at a picnic. It then moves onto the main character Jess in 2018 and starts a journey to connect these characters together and to solve the mystery of what happened on that terrible day.

One of the things that I liked most about this book was that there was a point where it became a book within a book. We get to experience Jess reading about the past through a true crime novel based on the 1959 events. Through this we get to meet the neighbors, community, and see how their small town was changed from these events.

I did enjoy the book, but I found myself not caring much for some of the characters like I have in her previous works. The book is fairly long and the middle section became a struggle to get through. I feel that this book lacks some of the charm that Morton's previous stories held and it was difficult for me to connect to the characters. I was more interested in minor characters like Polly and Isabel, who got little page time. I wish that there was more of a focus on these characters and their thoughts than the ones that she focused on.

Morton is great with having a mystery that isn't fully solved until the very end with various red herrings along the way. While I enjoyed the book, I think that the ending wasn't as exciting as her other books like The Secret Keeper or The House at Riverton. The story was alright but the pace left something to be desired.

Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC!

I feel like Kate Morton is so reliable - I thought going into this it would be good and twisty with LOTS OF WORDS, and that's just what it was. I'm sure this will be just what her fans are wanting.

I made it to 250 pages and this book is just not for me. It's overly wordy and extremely slow moving. While the writing is very good, the characters don't really call to me and it's a struggle to get through. I will not be finishing this novel.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this title. Since I dnf the boo I will not post a review on any purchasing sites.

An immersive perfect book that celebrates storytelling, books, women's lives, identity and place/home tied together in a murder mystery format. I felt like
I had read it carefully but had to go back many times to the the past reading as more is revealed. The pace and description so suits
the Australian setting and I found that I did want the story to move faster with less length as the impatient American I am my mind struggled
to grasp and hold it all. I often thought what do I chose..focus upon the plot details or the bigger picture and went back and forth.. the ending feels right and I decided I did not want to be subsumed by further dwelling on the story tempting as it is…must move forward to try to find
many more reading hours as well spent
Very grateful to the Boulder Bookstore employee decades ago who suggested Kate Morton when I was looking for a new author.

This story was engrossing, fascinating and was very hard to put down. From the mystery, to the description of the atmospheres, I felt that I was there. This story completely demanded my attention and felt like sitting on the front porch, drinking tea and talking with my grandmother. It was both a comfort, but enough to keep me guessing and on the edge of my seat. Such a wonderful story!!!

Kate Morton's intricate novel will keep pages turning despite the complex storylines that shift from a disturbing murder in 1959 to 2018 where Jess rushes from England to Australia to be with her beloved grandmother Nora. What Jess discovers is that there is a family connection to the 1959 murder where a woman killed her four children and herself. Marked but wonderful descriptions of the countryside and how characters react to the murder make this a satisfying novel for book lovers of family dramas. That said, there is a solid whodunit mystery that needs to be solved with plenty of motive by certain people and a plethora of red herrings. This could be a end of the year top ten book of 2023.

Thank yo7 Netgalley for providing me a free ARC in return for an honest review.

Always a treat the writhing of Kate Morton. And Homecoming does not disappoint. Jess idolizes her grandmother, Nora, who she learns fell, has a concussion, and was admitted to the hospital. Jess must travel from England to Australia to be with her beloved Nora. But Nora in her frail state keeps saying strange things that lead Jess to discover there are many skeletons in her grandmother’s closet.

While somewhat predictable if you’ve read other books by Morton,and sometimes repetitive, there are twists, gorgeous writing, and all the emotions in this book.

Prepare to be transported to 1959 Australia in this well-written book about a family tragedy and the secrets that follow them for generations. Kate Morton's story draws you in from the first page and carries you along to its satisfying conclusion. The dual storylines overlap in such a way that transports you through time effortlessly with characters that are well defined. Definitely one of the best written books I've read in a long time. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy.

I very much enjoyed this book. The mystery was compelling and I had no idea who had committed the crime until it was revealed, although the way the protagonist figured it out was a little too convenient. I would have much preferred one of the characters reveal what he knew posthumously. The timing was a bit off too. The book mentioned a DNA test done in 1978 when they didn't even exist until 1985. What I wish had been explored more fully, though, was the behavior of the family matriarch. The first part of the books makes her out to be a caring and nurturing grandmother, but as the book goes on, we learn that she is actually quite vicious. She gaslights, she twists words and experiences to suit her, she's controlling. I wanted the relationship between Polly and Jess to explore the truths about how Nora shaped their estrangement. Overall, a solid four stars.